ICYMI: One killed in Ibadan unrest as police clash with ‘hoodlums’

One person was killed on Saturday at the Apata axis of Ibadan, Oyo state capital, during a face-off between security officials and suspected hoodlums.

Adewale Osifeso, spokesperson of the state police command, confirmed the incident in a statement issued on Saturday.

He said the victim was a member of a vigilante group.

Osifeso said police officers and other security operatives were on a joint patrol across the city when they “ran into a band of hoodlums” around Apata junction market.

He explained that the hoodlums attacked the security officials during which a casualty was recorded.

There has been unrest across several parts of the city since Friday after residents took to the streets to protest the scarcity of fuel and currency.

“Today Saturday, 04/02/2023 at about 1015hrs, while embarking series of confidence-building patrols around different blackspots and flash points, the joint convoy patrol comprising of the Police and other agencies ran into a band of hoodlums around Apata Junction Market, Apata Area under Ido Local Government Area,” the statement reads.

“In a rather surprising event, the hoodlums who had perfected plans to molest residents, harass shop owners, and loot shops on sighting the combined convoy of security launched a series of unprovoked attacks by firing guns, hurling stones, sharp objects, and other dangerous missiles at them.

“The trained officers, cautious of the level of casualties that might be recorded should they engage at the location, resorted to restraints and professionally took charge at the scene while arresting the situation with reasonable force in line with standard operational procedure.

“However, during the rage, an individual identified to have been a member of a vigilante group and who was reported to have died in the fiasco has since been deposited at a government hospital for post-mortem.”

The statement did not specify if the victim was killed by the hoodlums or the security officials.

The police said normalcy has been restored to the area and patrol teams and other tactical assets have been deployed to maintain peace.

The protests have led to attacks on Access Bank and Wema Bank branches located in the Dugbe and Queen Cinema areas of the town.

Osifeso had earlier warned that intelligence showed that there was a plot to hijack the protests in order to attack banks, correctional centres, and facilities belonging to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).